Safety gas cut-off.



R. A. WAXLER.

SAFETY GAS GUT-OFF.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 6, 1913.

1,091 ,991. I Patented, Mar. 31, 1914.

.Fj Z. -Fjg 21 COLUMBIA PLANOGRAPH (IO-.WASHINGTON. D. c.

RALPH A. WAXLER, OF LAWRENCEVILLE, ILLINOIS.

SAFETY GAS CUT-OFF.-

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. 31, 1914.

Application filed December 6, 1913. Serial No. 805,148.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, RALPH A. TAXLER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Lawrenceville, in the county of Lawrence and State of Illinois, have invented new and useful Improvements in Safety Gas Cut- Offs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to safety cutofls for gas service systems, such as a house service system, the object of the invention being to provide an automatic, pressurecontrolled cut-off valve which will remain open until the gas pressure falls to a predetermined point and will then close and cut off the supply of gas to the building, thereby preventing danger of the escape of gas from open fixtures within the building in the event of the extinguishment of the flame by a reduction of gas pressure in the service system.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cut-off including a valve which when once closed must be positively opened and latched in opened position, in order that a supply of gas to a building from which the gas has been cut off by the closing of the valve may be reestablished, thus requiring positive manipulation of the valve before a resumption of gas flow can take place and at the same time indicating to the house holder the condition of affairs.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a gas cut-off which is simple of construction, positive, reliable and eflicient in action, and which affords convenience in the assemblage and repairs of the parts thereof.

The invention consists of the features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts herein fully described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is a vertical section through the safety cut-01f on the line 11 of Fig. 3.

Fig. 2 is a vertical section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a sectional plan view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1.

The device comprises a body or casing 1, having a gas inlet 2 and a gas outlet 3, threaded for respective connection with the sections of a service pipe leading from the main to the service system of the house or building, respectively. The interior of the casing provides a gas pressure chamber 4,

and said casing is provided at one side with an offset 5, for a purpose hereinafter described. A bonnet 6 is detachably secured to and closes the top of the casing, and serves as a container for the valvecontrolling parts of the appliance. The bonnet has an offset 7, corresponding in dimensions to the offset 5 and which overlies the same, as shown. The chamber 4 communicates with the outlet 3 through a restricted passage 8, and said passage is controlled by a gravity cut-off valve 9 adapted to close against an inclined valve seat 10, the valve and seat having a ground joint connection. The valve is in the form of a disk or plate and seats in an inclined position and is preferably provided with a weight 11, adapting it to close with a desired rapidity. The valve is secured to shaft 18, extending outwardly from the casing through stufling boxes 14 and provided at its outer end with a handle or hand wheel 15, whereby said shaft may be turned to manually open the valve. The offsets of the casing and bonnet form a compartment through which the shaft 13 extends, and secured to the shaft within said compartment is a collar 16 having a bearing surface 17 and a segmental latch member 18 provided with a shoulder 19. A leaf spring 20 is secured at its upper end within the 0dset of the bonnet and bears at its lower free end against the bearing surface 17, the pressure of said spring, combined with the weight of the valve 9, serving to quickly and positively close said valve when released for closing movement. A second rock shaft 21 is journaled in suitable hearings in the horn net and its offset, and its end within the honnet is provided with a latch arm 22 having a shoulder 23 to engage and interlock with the shoulder 19 of the latch member 18 when the valve is in open position, and by means of which latch mechanism the valve is normally held open against the weight of the valve and the pressure of the spring. The end of the rock shaft 21 which extends into the bonnet body carries a trip arm 24: which engages a beveled trip shoulder 25 on the adjacent arm 26 of a controlling lever'27, the other arm of which lever has pivotally connected thereto the vertically disposed stem 28 of a pressure and gravity-controlled iston or diaphragm 29, the first-named arm of the lever being pivotally mounted within the bonnet and said lever being pivotally supported intermediate of its ends upon a rocker link 30, whereby the diaphragm is permitted to have free vertical movement. The diaphragm controls a pressure equalizing port 31 establishing communication between the bonnet and chamber 4:, and is adapted to close upwardly against a seat 32 to cut ofl the communication normally between the bonnet and pressure chamber. The bonnet is provided with a vent passage 33 to permit of the escape of gas therefrom upon the closure of the valve, said passage being controlled by a check valve 34, whereby the access of foreign particles to the interior of the bonnet is prevented.

The piston or diaphragm is of a predetermined weight, and is normally held elevated by the pressure of the gas in the chamber 4, and remains elevated until the pressure in said chamber decreases to a predetermined degree, say to one-half ounce to the square inch, at which time the weight of the diaphragm forces it downward, thus tilting the arm 26 of the controlling lever to force the triparm 24 upwardly and outwardly.

It is understood, of course, that the valve 9 is manually opened by turning the shaft 13, and is locked in open-position by engagement of the latch 24: with the latch member 18, such positions of the parts being maintained when the gas at normal pressure is being supplied to the service system. Upon the reduction of pressure in the chamber 4 to the predetermined degree, and the dropping down of the piston or diaphragm, the latch 24 is elevated and moved out of engagement with the latch member 18, whereupon the valve 9 drops by gravity and the force of the spring 20 and cuts off the flow of gas to the service system, the excess gas in the bonnet venting to the atmosphere through the passage 33. The valve 9 being closed, no further supply of gas to the service system can take place until said valve is again manually opened and latched in open position, thus preventing the flow of gas through the burners into the building under the conditions mentioned when normal pressure is reestablished.

As will be evident, the bonnet may be easily detached and affords ready access to the working parts so that they may be cleansed or repaired or renewed as occasion requires.

I claim 1. In a safety gas cut off, the combination of a casing having a pressure chamber provided with an inlet and an outlet, the outlet having a valve seat, a rock shaft extending at one end exteriorly of said pressure chamher, a weighted valve carried by said shaft the controlling arm, and a pressure controlled diaphragm connectedwith said lever for adjusting the same to move the arm to shift the second named rock shaft to a position to retract the latch element.

2. In a safety gas cut off, the combination of a casing having an inlet and outlet, the latter beingprovided with a valve seat, a rock shaft extending at one end exteriorly of the casing, a weighted gravity controlled valve carried by said shaft, an offset at one side of the casing through which the exteriorly projecting end of the rock shaft extends, a bonnet in communication with the casing and having a complemental offset, said offset forming a compartment, a second rock shaft journaled in the bonnet and-com partment, a latch device upon the portion of the first named rock shaft inclosed within the compartment, a latch arm upon the portion of the second named rock shaft inclosed in the compartment, said latch arm being adapted for engagement with said latch device to hold the valve open, a spring acting on the latch device to assist in closing the valve when said latch device is dis engaged from the latch arm, a controlling arm upon the second named rock shaft with-' in the bonnet, a controlling arm within the bonnet, a lever pivo-tally mounted upon the rocker arm and having an inclined surface engaging the controlling arm for tilting said arm under prescribed conditions to release the latch arm, and a pressure con trdlled device influenced by variations of pressure in the casing for adjusting the lever to effect tilting of the controlling arm when the pressure in the casing falls to a predetermined degree.

In testimony whereof I afiiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

. RALPH A. IVAXLERf- Witnesses:

EMERY C. MARSHALI'L; J. C. TUSTIN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Washington, D. C.

Commissioner of Patents. 

